About Us

Artist Biography

Sherry Sonntag-Whorl

Stained Glass Artist

In 1986, Sherry Sonntag-Whorl began her professional career in art glass fabrication, with the opening of Classic Glass, in Hollywood, Maryland. This small stained glass production studio served as a spring board for what is now nationally known as Classic Glass Studios. Seasonally located on the Potomac River in St. Mary’s countyMaryland, and on the Fisheating Creek, in Palmdale, Florida, Classic Glass Studios designs and constructs flat glass panels for both private and public settings. With installations throughout the continental United States, and several countries abroad, Sherry has produced hundreds of custom commissioned art glass panels for windows, entry foyers, transoms, interior wall partitions, cabinets, and shower enclosures. In addition to her custom designed art glass panels, Sherry exhibits her uniquely original glass art in over 25 nationally rated art festivals and numerous art galleries along the eastern seaboard.

Stylistically ranging from traditional Victorian design to Modern Contemporary art forms, Sherry utilizes the Tiffany copper foil method for constructing her art glass panels. Through the use of warm fused glass inclusions, rondels, dicroic glass, and other “found” objects, Sherry’s Modern Contemporary glass panels have won her numerous awards at rated art festivals. And while her geometrically styled modern contemporary art is her passion, her wildlife and landscape panels are greatly influenced by her studio setting on the Potomac River, with great blue herons, white egrets and shore birds utilized as the focal point for her art. Drawn by the Art Deco architecture of south Florida, Classic Glass Studios open the Fisheating Creek studio in 2004. The influence of the Florida landscape and architecture can be seen in a large number of Sherry’s more recent works.

Over the years, Sherry has deepened and refined the art of design, and the craft of flat glass construction through continuing education. Classes in Neon Glass, Hot Glass, Blown Glass, Warm Glass Fusing, lampworking and Dalle de Verre (to name a few), as well as factory tours at major art glass manufactures and art glass processes seminars throughout the U.S., have greatly added to her product knowledge, and artistic techniques.

“Classic Glass Studios is an ongoing, growing concern. We design and build art works in a difficult and demanding medium. Stained glass, flat glass, or however you wish to describe art glass, is a form of expression that makes exceptional demands on the artist who creates its design, and also requires specifically trained artisans to bring it to life. The glass itself imposes numerous restrictions on the artist trying to manipulate it into their vision of the finished art work. Couple that with the difficulties of construction, and you have a monster of a medium you’re working in.” To her credit, Sherry, and Classic Glass Studios has exceedingly high standards of construction, and very strict quality controls. “I am personally involved in every aspect of a project, from preliminary design, to finished installation. We are proud of the fact that we are building glass not just for today, but for the centuries. Quality is of critical importance. We take our art, and our construction / fabrication very seriously.” But how do you marry that quality of construction with your vision of the finished art, without compromising the artistic integrity of the work? “Our goal is to provide unique, one-of-a-kind art glass that is custom designed and constructed to fit a specific space and environment. We design to impact the observer through the richness of texture and flow, and intensified color of each piece of glass. Our goal is to draw the viewer into a relationship with the artwork and its elements, and elicit emotion from our art.”